John Scarffe, Nederland. Nederland residents and businesses will be able to take advantage of energy efficiency programs after the Nederland Board of Trustees adopted an Energy Action Plan to support the Town’s renewable energy commitment during a regular meeting at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, August 6, 2019, in the Nederland Community Center. The Board also swore in a new Town Clerk and gave staff direction on the Boulder County Intergovernmental Agreement and the current moratorium on new marijuana businesses. 

Town Administrator Karen Gerrity said she has been on a team working with Xcel Energy, the Sustainability Advisory Board (SAB) and other stakeholders to support a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Xcel passed by the Board of Trustees in March 2019. “What you’re going to see tonight is a combination of a year of meetings to further the Town’s energy goal.”

The Town has a goal of 100 percent renewable energy by 2025, so this will move the Town closer. “This plan outlines energy efficiency strategies that will have an immediate impact on the Town’s energy consumption to be implemented over the next 18 months with the support of Xcel Energy community facilitators,” according to the agenda information memo. Strategies identified focus on both residential and commercial energy efficiency and are designed to support other work the Town is doing to increase renewable energy production through Xcel’s Energy Future Communities and other initiatives, according to the memo. Staff recommended that the Board approve the plan to allow the project to move forward into the implementation phase. 

Trustee Alan Apt and SAB liaison for the Board, said the Town set a record with the highest percentage of the number of residents signing up for the Renewable Connect program.

SAB Chair Melody Baumhover said the programs in the plan, like the Partnership in Energy program, provide incentives, rebates and help with tax incentives. SAB Member Eryka Thorley, who has been one of the leaders in establishing the Town’s energy goals, said the energy breakdown is 1 percent municipality, 40 per cent commercial and the rest residential so they want to focus on residential piece. SAB will be reaching out to those people.

These are no, or low-cost programs and  we will help with flyers and marketing materials,” Thorley said. SAB would like to see 85 residences and 11 businesses participate in Xcel’s energy efficiency programs. 

Thorley said Xcel will conduct a home energy cost analysis that would cover batteries, shower heads, aerators and is a $250 value for $50. Xcel will do an extensive energy audit to find leaks. 

After discussion, the Trustees agreed that they appreciated the hard work of SAB and the team and were excited about moving forward and getting information out to the public. The Board adopted the Energy Action Plan. 

Gerrity introduced a resolution for the appointment of Miranda Fisher to the position of Town Clerk, with the departure of former Town Clerk Hope Jordan. Staff posted the job opening and received 21 applications. The Hiring Committee selected four for initial interviews, then selected two finalists, and after subsequent follow-up interviews and due diligence, recommended Miranda Fisher for the position.  

Fisher was raised in and attended schools in the Greater Nederland Area. She has spent the past four years employed as the Regional Director for AACRES Nevada, a health, safety and human services state organization. 

Fisher has a master’s degree in public administration and is eager to return to the Nederland area and serve the community as the Town Clerk. Gerrity said this was a goal for her, and she has hit the ground running.

Mayor Larsen then administered the Oath of Office, and Fisher took her place recording the Board meeting.

The Board discussed the Comprehensive Development Plan Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between Boulder County and the Town of Nederland, which went into effect in March, 2002 with a 20-year term.

 The current IGA requires a five-step process for amending the IGA to approve annexations, with recommendations from both the Town and County planning commissions, approval by the Nederland Board of Trustees and Boulder County Commissioners, and a vote of the town electorate, according to the memo. Town staff, Boulder County Land Use staff, the Boulder County Commissioners and the Trustees have spent the past two years discussing potential revisions to the IGA. 

Public Meetings and Community Forums have been taking place in Nederland since fall of 2017 allowing a community conversation to unfold. Proposed revisions to the IGA include changes to streamline the annexation procedure, and to ensure timely responses to referrals and establishment of clear procedures for processing amendments, according to the memo.

The draft IGA includes a Primary Planning Area within which annexation can occur with no amendment to the IGA or decision role for the County, and no vote of the town electorate. Annexation would need to be initiated by the property owner. The draft reflects an expiration date of 2032, 10 years from the current 2022 expiration date.

Larsen said that based on the last meeting, they have removed Beaver Valley Estates from the IGA and did outreach. Two property owners wanted to be annexed and one is contiguous. He asked if the Board is in favor of completing this in the next couple of months and having it take effect now or wait until 2022. The Trustees agreed to work on this now with lots of public input. 

The Board discussed when an annexation should come before the voters, with the original recommendation for a request for annexation of four or more properties requiring an election. The Board requested that staff put together language on how many properties or how much acreage would trigger an election.

Trustees clarified that this Board, nor any future board, cannot force any property owner to be annexed, and the Board is not attempting to land grab. Areas for Future Planning were developed by the County and the Board. In the future, if landowners want to annex they can submit an application.

Protecting wildlife is also in the goal. The IGA is a planning document that allows freedom in the future. 

The Trustees also asked how many units will fill the Town’s water and sewer capacity. 

Larsen requested that Public Works develop a metric for future water and sewer capacity and that staff develop language for when an election would be triggered, bringing this back the first week in September. Gerrity said she has a link available for the IGA that includes maps, the proposed IGA all of the public comments. It can be found at https://www.bouldercounty.org/property-and-land/landuse/planning/intergovernmental-agreements-iga/iga-19-0001/.

The Board agreed to revoke a moratorium on marijuana businesses in Town passed on April 2, 2019, and set to expire in November. By a nod of five, the Board agreed to place the item on the Consent Agenda for the next meeting.

(Originally published in the August 15, 2019, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)